I think alot of this has to do with actually having something to lose now.
Before I straightened myself up I didn't really care about much...I didn't mind being around people who had that bad energy that rub off on me...Im not gonna call it peer pressure, because I ultimately made my own decisions. I didn't care about getting arrested...I ended up getting shot and didn't care if it happened again because I knew what it felt like and could brace myself for it...I was drinking alot, and putting all types of drugs into my body that made me just not care.
Now I got my shyt straight, got a career, got married, bought a house in a nice area...and I actually have shyt to lose, and if something happens to me, its going to affect other people now and not just me. My parents still live in the hood I grew up in...and when I go back, I sit on the steps and let me old friends come around to me...I make it clear we can chill, bbq, drink, smoke, play cards and shyt...but i aint leaving to go nowhere. Even if Im smart enough to not do shyt, trouble can always find you if you're in that environment...I can't afford to get arrested anymore or none of that, and Im too old for the petty arguments and beefs that go on, and the immaturity.
It's all love though with my peoples...some people are just stuck...not too much you can do about it, but I'll never completely abandon them.